1. Field
The present disclosure relates generally to the transmitter front-end of a wireless communication system. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to a novel low-power wideband transmitter front-end.
2. Related Art
Traditional wireless communication systems are usually designed for a specific standard, such as GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) or Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA), each requiring different carrier frequencies. For example, the carrier frequency of the GSM signals varies from 800 MHz to 1 Ghz, while the carrier frequency of the W-CDMA signals varies between 2-3 GHz. Current demand for the convergence of wireless services, in which users can access different standards from the same wireless device, is driving the development of multi-standard and multi-band transceivers, which are capable of transmitting/receiving radio signals in the entire wireless communication spectrum (from 300 MHz to 3 GHz).
To meet multi-standard and multi-band requirements, the RF front-end (which includes circuitry between the antenna and the first intermediate frequency (IF) stage) needs to operate over a frequency range covering the entire wireless communication spectrum.